SPRINGFIELD – A Chicopee man faces up to 20 years in prison after admitting Tuesday to multiple charges involving child pornography and the exploitation of children.

Joseph Hiersche, 40, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to seven counts of exploitation of a child, receipt of child pornography and possession of child pornography, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office

Prosecutors charged that over the last 2 years Hiersche downloaded several explicit videos and photographs of children from the Internet. They also charged that he used a hidden camera to take photos and record videos of two naked children in a bathtub. The images were an attempt to make sexually explicit images that he intended to sell to over the internet, officials said.

The identities of the children and their relationship to Hiersche was not disclosed.

U.S. District Judge Denise J. Casper ordered Hiersche to appear in court on March 7 for sentencing.

He could be sentenced up to 240 months in federal prison to be followed by supervised release for the remainder of his life. He also faces a fine of as much as $2.25 million.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Alex J. Grant of the U.S. Attorney’s Springfield Branch Unit. The investigation was conducted jointly by the U.S. Attorney, the Hampden County District Attorney’s Office, and the Springfield and Chicopee police departments.